The STockholm memorandum Tipping The ScaleS TowardS SustainabiliTy 18 may 2011 1 Delegates of The 3rd Nobel Laureate Symposium on Global Sustainability together with members of the UN High-level Panel on Global Sustainability on the stairs of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. The Stockholm Memorandum, developed and signed by Nobel Laureates during the Symposium, was discussed and handed i. mind-shift for a great Transformation over to the Panel which is preparing the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro (Rio +20). “we are the first generation facing the evidence of global change. it therefore PHOTOGRAPHY 3 PHOTOGRAPHY falls upon us to change our relationship This situation concerns us deeply. As members of the 3rd Nobel We cannot continue on our current path. The time for with the planet, in order to tip the scales Laureate Symposium on Global Sustainability we call upon all procrastination is over. We cannot afford the luxury of denial. towards a sustainable world for future leaders of the 21st century to exercise a collective responsibility We must respond rationally, equipped with scientific evidence. R d N d of planetary stewardship. This means laying the foundation for Our predicament can only be redressed by reconnecting human O generations.” a sustainable and equitable global civilization in which the entire bel development and global sustainability, moving away from the Earth community is secure and prosperous. La The Earth system is complex. There are many aspects that we do false dichotomy that places them in opposition. u R e not yet understand. Nevertheless, we are the first generation Science indicates that we are transgressing planetary boundaries at In an interconnected and constrained world, in which we e S e with the insight of the new global risks facing humanity. that have kept civilization safe for the past 10,000 years. have a symbiotic relationship with the planet, environmental Y m Evidence is growing that human pressures are starting to pos We face the evidence that our progress as the dominant sustainability is a precondition for poverty eradication, economic overwhelm the Earth’s buffering capacity. ium/S species has come at a very high price. Unsustainable patterns of development, and social justice. production, consumption, and population growth are challenging Humans are now the most significant driver of global change, T Our call is for fundamental transformation and innovation in ef the resilience of the planet to support human activity. At the propelling the planet into a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene. AN all spheres and at all scales in order to stop and reverse global Nil same time, inequalities between and within societies remain We can no longer exclude the possibility that our collective environmental change and move toward fair and lasting sson high, leaving behind billions with unmet basic human needs and actions will trigger tipping points, risking abrupt and irreversible prosperity for present and future generations. disproportionate vulnerability to global environmental change. consequences for human communities and ecological systems. 2 3 ii. priorities for coherent global action we recommend a dual track approach: 1. reaching a more equitable world 3. creating an efficiency revolution 5. moving beyond green growth 7. Strengthening earth system governance H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, who inaugurated the Symposium, greets Nobel Laureate Nadine Gordimer. Unequal distribution of the benefits of economic development We must transform the way we use energy and materials. In There are compelling reasons to rethink the conventional The multilateral system must be reformed to cope with the a) emergency solutions now, that begin to are at the root of poverty. Despite efforts to address poverty, practice this means massive efforts to enhance energy efficiency model of economic development. Tinkering with the economic defining challenges of our time, namely transforming humanity’s stop and reverse negative environmental more than a third of the world’s population still live on less and resource productivity, avoiding unintended secondary system that generated the global crises is not enough. Markets relationship with the planet and rebuilding trust between people than 2 US dollars per day. This needs our immediate attention. consequences. The “throw away concept” must give way to and entrepreneurship will be prime drivers of decision making and nations. Global governance must be strengthened to respect trends and redress inequalities in the Environment and development must go hand in hand. We need to: systematic efforts to develop circular material flows. We must: and economic change, but must be complemented by policy planetary boundaries and to support regional, national and local frameworks that promote a new industrial metabolism and approaches. We should: inadequate institutional frameworks • Achieve the Millennium Development Goals, in the spirit of the • Introduce strict resource efficiency standards to enable a resource use. We should: within which we operate, and Millennium Declaration, recognising that global sustainability decoupling of economic growth from resource use. • Develop and strengthen institutions that can integrate the is a precondition of success. • Take account of natural capital, ecosystem services and climate, biodiversity and development agendas. • Develop new business models, based on radically improved b) long term structural solutions that social aspects of progress in all economic decisions and poverty • Adopt a global contract between industrialized and developing energy and material efficiency. • Explore new institutions that help to address the legitimate reduction strategies. This requires the development of new gradually change values, institutions and countries to scale up investment in approaches that integrate interests of future generations. welfare indicators that address the shortcomings of GDP as an poverty reduction, climate stabilization, and ecosystem policy frameworks. we need to support 4. ensuring affordable food for all indicator of growth. stewardship. Current food production systems are often unsustainable, 8. Enacting a new contract between science our ability to innovate, adapt, and learn. • Reset economic incentives so that innovation is driven by inefficient and wasteful, and increasingly threatened by and society wider societal interests and reaches the large proportion of the 2. managing the climate – energy challenge dwindling oil and phosphorus resources, financial speculation, global population that is currently not benefitting from these Filling gaps in our knowledge and deepening our understanding Nobel Laureates Peter Doherty, Mario J. Molina, Carlo Rubbia We urge governments to agree on global emission reductions and climate impacts. This is already causing widespread hunger is necessary to find solutions to the challenges of the and Jim Mirrlees during The 3rd Nobel Laureate Symposium innovations. guided by science and embedded in ethics and justice. At the and malnutrition today. We can no longer afford the massive loss Anthropocene, and calls for major investments in science. A on Global Sustainability. same time, the energy needs of the three billion people who lack of biodiversity and reduction in carbon sinks when ecosystems dialogue with decision-makers and the general public is also an access to reliable sources of energy need to be fulfilled. Global are converted into cropland. We need to: 6. reducing human pressures important part of a new contract between science and society. efforts need to: Consumerism, inefficient resource use and inappropriate • Foster a new agricultural revolution where more food is We need to: technologies are the primary drivers of humanity’s growing • Keep global warming below 2°C, implying a peak in global produced in a sustainable way on current agricultural land and impact on the planet. However, population growth also needs • Launch a major initiative on the earth system research for CO emissions no later than 2015 and recognise that even a within safe boundaries of water resources. 2 attention. We must: global sustainability, at a scale similar to those devoted to warming of 2°C carries a very high risk of serious impacts and • Fund appropriate sustainable agricultural technology to deliver areas such as space, defence and health, to tap all sources of the need for major adaptation efforts. • Raise public awareness about the impacts of unsustainable significant yield increases on small farms in developing countries. ingenuity across disciplines and across the globe. consumption and shift away from the prevailing culture of • Put a sufficiently high price on carbon and deliver the G-20 consumerism to sustainability. • Scale up our education efforts to increase scientific literacy commitment to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, using these especially among the young. funds to contribute to the several hundred billion US dollars per • Greatly increase access to reproductive health services, year needed to scale up investments in renewable energy. education and credit, aiming at empowering women all over the world. Such measures are important in their own right but will also reduce birth rates. phoTOGRAPHY 3rd nobel laureaTe SympoSium/STefan nilsson phoTOGRAPHY 3rd nobel laureaTe SympoSium/STefan nilsson 4 5 peTer agre werner arber paul J. cruTzen peTer doherTy murray gell-mann Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2003 Nobel Prize in Physiology